1. Technical Field
The invention relates to the field of ink jet printers and more particularly to a device for fixing and contacting of drive elements in the form of piezotubes of ink jet printers.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The production of recording heads for ink jet printers, in which a plurality of ink ducts extend between an ink supply part and the end of the recording head toward a record support, is performed, as is known, in a so-called pouring process. The procedure in practice is to place in a mold part so-called mold needles, on each of which a drive element for the droplet ejection in the form of a so-called piezotube of piezoceramic material is fitted. For the contacting of the piezotubes, contact clamps may be provided, which hold at the same time also the piezotubes. The unit thus preassembled is then sealed. After the mold has hardened, the mold needles are pulled out. The resulting cavities from the ink ducts in the interior of the recording head.
A problem with known production methods is the exact positioning and fixing of the piezotubes in the mold part. Because of the very small dimensions of the parts used and because of the stringent requirements of exact adjustment, a high degree of manual skill is required for the production of ink recording heads. In addition, the contacting of the piezotubes, provided with an outer and an inner electrode, must be fully ensured before the actual sealing.